Philips 40PFL7605
Part TV, part lighting appliance, Philip’s 40PFL7605 features the Spectra 2 iteration of the brand’s trademark Ambilight mood lighting feature. Despite the integrated light show, this Edge-lit LED screen is still just 41.5mm deep. Alas, there’s no Freeview HD tuner on board, so insist your dealer to bundle a Freeview HD set top box in for the price.
Once networked, you can browse for media, but support is seemingly inconsistent. Standard AVIs failed to play, but MKVs were fine. Video file support from USB is all encompassing. There is no enticing apps portal on offer, but Philips does include an embedded browser for open web access, however this lacks Flash support. Picture quality is generally fine, although you will end up wrestling with the Pixel Plus HD picture engine to get really pleasing results. Audio quality is best in class.
Reg Rating 70%
Price £1,099
More Info Philips
Samsung UE40D8000
Samsung UE40D8000 3D LED TV Reg Rating 85 per cent Price £1,500 With razor sharp images, deep black levels and more colour hues than a Dulux catalogue, Samsung’s D8000 series have had TV enthusiasts salivating since their unveiling. The soon to disembark 40in model is the most affordable in the (admittedly pricey) line-up, and loses none of the allure of it larger siblings.
An astoundingly dynamic Edge LED backlit panel produces a real head turner of a picture. Not only great in high def, the screen offers the best Active Shutter 3D performance we’ve yet seen from the brand. The bezel is so thin (just 5cm) its 3D images seem to leap from the screen. Also impressive is the brand’s new Smart Hub Internet connected portal, which offers on-tap You Tube, BBC iPlayer, Facebook and miscellaneous IPTV and entertainment content from Samsung’s fast-growing apps store. The only reason why this Samsung doesn't get the Editor's Choice award is due to how much more expensive it is than others in this round-up., and for that price, you'd expect it to be good.
Reg Rating 85%
Price £1500
More Info Samsung
Next page: Samsung LE40C650
COMMENTS
Expensive
That's a large price premium for network (non)connectivity.
Find a larger, or cheaper TV without worrying about network connectivity and pick up a Western Digital WD TV Live Plus 1080p HD Media Player. Then, in 2 years when it's obsolete, ditch it and buy a newer one. Loads cheaper than just ditching your TV and buying a newer one....
Run things for a long time here
I replace every 9 to 10 years as well. I have had 3 large TVs so far in my life and I am nearly 50.
I am also an early adopter.
I ran a first generation Wega IDTV until I got a HDTV.
My HDTV doesn't do Freesat or Freeview HD, just normal Freeview.
My current 46" better last that extra 7 to 8 years!
Only thing I am missing is 3D but I get headaches from that.
I spend a lot rarely rather than less more frequently.
As to Betamax - the only working VCRs I have, happen to have that printed on them, mind you they have only been used for PC video capture since we got our first digital terrestrial PVR (pre Freeview).
Just make sure you have plenty of HDMI ports.
Re: Poor investment (Longevity)
In the case of a pair of tellies I bought from a certain Korean manufacturer (LE40A656, T220HD) my longevity estimate would be around about 24 months.
For the record the warranty doesn't extend that far, whatever the EU, Trading Standards et al, or indeed my receipt says about it (according to the manufacturer).
As it turns out the root cause was down to some bulging electrolytic caps in the PSUs. I replaced the caps myself rather than pay someone £200 a shot replace the PSU boards with identically broken PSU boards which would fail < 2 years down the line again.
Strangely the T220HD's faulty caps appeared to have already been replaced (judging by the messy joints and burn marks on the board), and the failed caps were a different brand from the others on the board.
Sony Wins !
No Chance, they are on my blacklist. Do not trust them to throw some sort of DRM in your lap at later date.
All you laptop buyers - Sony disables record stereo mix function (the old record what U hear) on all their Vaio's so if you want this function look else where.
Plasma + Backlit = Divide By Zero
I didn't think plasma display needed a backlit source since each set of pixels produce their own light, or am I missing something about the CCFL bit.
